CWMA: High Beams, Andale

Friday night on the CWMA's had three, count them, three different concerts going on in one night. For me, I stopped in for the dual showing at Bar Deluxe.

Up first, the always punk-tastic Andale! Opening up to the vigorous "Black Is Bad," Memorie's voice filled the room with both harmony and grit, giving you the true punk rock girl experience in every song. Making their way through the self-titled album, the group got the audience worked up to "Walk Away," "Messed Up," and of course crowd favorite "Fucking Tourettes" with a shout out to CW's Bill Frost, fittingly enough. Finishing off their set with new number "Milton Bradley," she belted out the lyrics "You sunk my battleship!" to a trenching guitar riff. This was the first time I got to see Andale! live and was not disappointed one bit.

Andale's Mike Sasish and Josh Dixon didn't have to go far as they took up guitar and drums for the ever elusive closing group The High Beams. Wasting little time the band took off running through a collection of well-known numbers and unknown gems. The always rocking "Dirty Clothes" got the room moving, jumping right into "Talk In Cheap" to keep that momentum going. While the majority of the playlist remained a mystery, even to us who have seen them live before, they showed everyone they could go from somber tone to heart-pounding rock in an instant, and left little doubt why they made the Top 30 this year. Leaving me to really question... where's the album, guys?
(Gavin Sheehan)
A fantastic showing for both, and at the end I walked away with both an iAndale! album AND a beer cozy! That's right, iAndale! makes a beer cozy, all nice and red and foamy. Only one night left for the CWMA's... why are you sitting at home like the hermit you are? Get up and get out tonight before the showcases are done!